1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a watering device for animals and more particularly to a water tray drinker for pigs.
2. Description of the Related Art
The swine industry has traditionally used nipple drinkers for water presentation to the pigs within a confinement pen. The nipple drinkers have been mounted in various ways to make water available to the pigs. The primary ways are: (1) nipple drinkers mounted in the fence-line; (2) swinging nipple drinkers suspended from the ceiling in the middle of a pen; (3) nipples mounted along side tube feeders; and (4) nipples mounted in cups on the fence-line. The above-identified systems rely upon the nipple dispensing the correct water flow rate to satisfy the pigs' needs for all conditions (hot weather, overstocking of pens and bigger pigs with increased water requirements). It is evident based upon the social and vice issues of pigs that those systems do not meet the needs of the pigs in all situations. Flow rates of nipple drinkers are highly dependent upon water pressure within the lines, orifice size of the nipples for dispensing water and the cleanliness of the screens in the nipples. If any of those elements change, the amount of water being made available to the pigs impacts social and performance of the pigs. The typical pig manager is not capable of determining flow rates at a given point in time. Those conditions can be highly variable at any point, thus creating problems with flow rates that are not discernable to the manager of the pigs.